Investing in Plastic Surgery to Increase Income

Last summer I asked if you'd be willing to get plastic surgery to improve your career. Well, on my post titled Being Beautiful Can Earn You a Fortune one reader linked to a story where a woman did just that. In fact, she got several surgeries to improve various parts of her face and body -- and she reaped a financial windfall.

Here's the work she had done:

I started with liposuction on my thighs. And breast implants. Then I had a nose job. Twice -- the first one was botched. I had my ears pinned back. My eyes done. A forehead lift. Filler in my lips. And then lip surgery to repair the damage done by the filler. I had a tummy tuck. A facelift. And I've had my teeth veneered.

Yikes! They don't say what all this cost her, but it couldn't be cheap.

She started the surgeries at 24 and saw immediate results:

Not only did my romantic options explode, but my career instantly shifted into a higher gear. I was suddenly being courted by senior partners, included in meetings with the CEOs and CFOs of current and prospective clients. I thought, "Wait a minute -- I'm the same person I was before the surgeries." But now I looked like a bombshell in addition to being really good at my work, and it definitely opened up more opportunities. That's when I began to think of the surgeries as an asset and an investment.

A few thoughts here:

1. You still need to be good at your work to get as far as she did (she's now a CEO). Looks only get you so far.

2. That said, all else being equal, being attractive is a big asset.

3. As I noted above, the surgeries probably cost a ton. But as she notes, they are really an investment/asset. If she spent $100,000 (a complete guess) but reaped $1,000,000 (probably more) in extra pay, it was a very good financial move, huh? (Not to mention the personal-life benefits.)

It's an interesting piece to read all the way through. It highlights what we talked about last month -- that being beautiful can help you get ahead in your career and ultimately earn more money. And as we said, people don't have to go to the extremes noted in this story. Simply dressing nicely, having proper hygiene, wearing makeup (women), being in shape, etc. are steps we can all take to improve our appearances (and thus help to grow our incomes.)

Comments

[Bad_Brad]

Human beings can be such simple creatures sometimes. We view very physically attractive people as also being much more competent and accomplished.

[JimL]

The costs of procedures can vary. Taking average costs, the woman described has spent at least $60,000.

There are some office based procedures, such as chemical peels, dermabrasion, fillers and toxins, that are less invasive and less costly. However, those procedures are temporary are will need to be repeated. Costs for the temporary procedures average around $500 to $1000 per application/visit. First time visits can often be more and then the follow up visits are basically touch ups and maintenance.

One other interesting fact is that the average patient having a cosmetic procedure will return for an addition 3 procedures.

[Kolton @FMT]

Hmm, this is a very odd strategy to make more money. I can see how looking good is an asset, which in turn provides a great investment opportunity. But I don't think it would be the right investment for everybody. plus, not to mention the time and recovering it takes after all the surgeries. To me, I would never consider a strategy like this.

[Funny about Money]

No offense, but I think she's psychotic. That comes under the heading of "sick behavior."

You don't have to have yourself surgically mutilated to prove to others that you're competent on the job. If you have to do that to prove something to yourself (as seems to be the case), then you need an entirely different kind of therapy.

[Old Limey]

I worked in the defense & aerospace industry from 1951 until 1992. Admittedly, plastic surgery for people of modest means wasn't widespread during that period, however it wouldn't have mattered if it had been. In my field you were judged primarily by your educational and technical skills as well as your accomplishments at every level starting with an associate engineer up through being a Department manager with 100 employees, a Division manager with 300 employees, or a Director in charge of several engineering divisions. In the particular portion of the company that I worked in, the single most powerful individual was a US Navy Admiral in the Pentagon, and believe me, Admirals don't get promoted to their lofty position because of their good looks.

[Maggie@SquarePennies]

People are easily fooled, including myself. I noticed that when a friend lost a lot of weight I started thinking of her as being more intelligent, savvy about all sorts of complicated issues. And I'm one who is all about "being myself" with not too much make-up, etc. Unfortunately we are easily influenced by appearance. I don't know that I'd invest a lot of money in surgery unless I was really unfortunate looking and young enough to get the benefit. That said, we all need to try to look beyond appearance and be aware that we are likely to make poor judgements based on appearance.

[Luis]

I think all these commenters are missing what FMF is saying and also what he is not saying. He is making a simple point while we are drawing incorrect and complex conclusions. This is not for everyone, not everyone who does it is crazy, and we as a human race will not stop our perceptions of image by simply saying not to do it.

[IEnhance]

I feel that this woman probably felt more confident after her surgeries which most likely led to her taking more initiative at work fueling her career growth. Doing the things that make us feel good and look good are worthwhile investments.

[Mark]

Although OldLimey says admirals don't get to be admirals due to their good looks, and that engineers are judged primarily on technical ability and education, even those positions are influenced by looks. Larger (tall AND overweight) men tend to rise further and faster than others, and female engineers who dress "seriously" are taken more seriously than those who don't.

Look no further than US presidents - name a short one, and I will name 10 tall ones.

I work in a male-dominated technical field, and I have seen firsthand that communication skills, professional appearance, etc. do indeed influence promotion decisions. There are very few positions in which the biases of human nature can be eliminated, and purely rational objective decisions are made.

Unlike IEnhance sugegsted above, the beneficiaries were not the same people before-and-after. It was the decision-makers and managers that gravitated towards people that their instincts told them were better. Unfortunately, raw human instincts make us think that physically powerful men and physically attractive women are "better" than the rest of us.